Mike's Bikes Botswana Sister Shop

Mike's
Bikes has hit the ground rolling with their new Sister Shop in
Gaborone, Botswana. Owners Ken Martin and Matt Adams, fresh from their
recent bicycle philanthropy work in Ghana, overcame obstacles great and
small to finally realize their goal of creating a self-sustaining
source of affordable bicycle transportation in Botswana.

The idea was born when Botswanan Red Cross worker Jon 'Bones' Moletsane was linked with Ken and Matt through the BikeTown Africa Aid Project.
A major problem in Bones' home of Botswana was that average people
there had absolutely no access to bicycles. Private car ownership
remains largely out of reach, and public transit for the city of over
200,000 is unreliable and expensive, meaning that the primary mode of
local transportation is by foot. It became obvious that a source of
affordable bikes could literally change lives. In a place like Africa,
bicycles allow their owners access to health care, education, and
employment that would be otherwise unreachable.

There are many
bicycle-related aid projects currently under way in Africa, but Ken and
Matt saw in them a fundamental flaw that they wanted to correct. Most
of these projects collect bikes, donate them to a community, and then
leave. While this is great for the limited number of people that end up
with the bikes initially, it does nothing to create a sustainable
supply of bikes in the long run. It also does nothing to ensure that
the donated bikes will stay operational with replacement parts or
service. Even a simple flat tire can land these donated bikes discarded
on the side of the road.

As part of the company's
vision that bikes have the power to change the world, Mike's Bikes made
it their mission to create and fully fund a start-up bicycle store for
Bones in Gabarone, Botswana, and to educate him on how to sell and
service bicycles, and how to run a successful business. Ken and Matt
believed this to be the best way to make an impact on the community
that was not only self-sustaining, but would actually grow organically
and spread the use of the bicycle as reliable, affordable
transportation in Gabarone as time went on.

The company asked its customers to get involved by donating their old bikes to the Mike's Bikes Africa Bike Drive,
and the Northern California cycling community responded. Customers
donated bikes over a period of three months at all six Mike's Bikes
stores, and Mike's purchased a 40' shipping container to transport the
bikes to Africa. Dynacraft Bikes
also pitched in with a hugely generous donation of 75 new bikes. At the
end of the wildly successful Bike Drive, 406 bicycles were collected
and packed into the shipping container with help from students from Oakland's College Preparatory School.

In this unique model, the
donated bikes are given by Mike's Bikes to the Sister Shop at no
charge, who then sells them for a fair price to the local community.
The proceeds generated by this first wave of sales are then reinvested
by the Sister Shop into purchasing the second round of inventory, and a
self-sustaining constant supply of bicycles and spare parts is created,
along with local technical knowledge to keep the bikes running well.As
the 406 bikes completed their eight week journey from California, Ken
and Matt, along with eight students from CPS in Oakland and their
chaperones, made their own journey to Botswana to meet Bones and begin
the task of building their African Sister Shop, JonMol Cycle Services.
The shop was outfitted with display space, work areas and bicycle
storage. Large boxes of donated parts and accessories brought on the
flight from San Francisco were unpacked and displayed. Signage was
ordered and installed. Marketing material was distributed to the public
- by bike of course! And as soon as the container of bikes was unsealed
on the morning of Sunday, July 13, it was apparent the venture would be
a roaring success. The shop was not even yet officially open, but with
families noticing the sea of bikes on their way home from church, Ken,
Matt, and Bones were swarmed with shoppers as they unloaded the
shipping container. By the end of the day, 15 bikes had found new
homes, and JonMol Bicycle Services was born.

"Many people seem to fall for the idea of bicycling..."-Bones Moletsane

The
important final step was to establish relationships with distributors
in neighboring South Africa for Bones to reinvest his initial revenue
in more inventory of bikes, parts and accessories. Ken and Matt used
their contacts in South Africa to connect the two markets and a new
supply chain was created. The Sister Shops, Mike's Bikes and JonMol,
have been in constant contact since Ken and Matt's return to
California. As with any new company, especially one in Africa,
challenges, questions and issues arise continuously, and Mike's Bikes
has committed to mentoring Bones through to success.

Since Ken
and Matt have spent most of their careers in bicycle retail, their
Sister Shop program is a perfect way to use their business skills and
their bicycle knowledge to affect positive change that is both
long-lasting and self-sustaining. The Mike's Bikes Foundation is their
new non-profit entity, and is currently applying for 501c(3) tax-exempt
status. The Sister Shop program is infinitely scalable, and the Mike's
Bikes Foundation will be the primary vehicle to fund the effort. The
search is currently under way for the next African entrepreneurs to
start the next Sister Shops and expand the program to benefit as many
communities as possible.

In a recent email
conversation, Bones reported that business at JonMol Bicycle Services
is doing very well and improving every day. "Many people seem to fall
for the idea of bicycling," reports Bones. Everyone at Mike's Bikes
couldn't be more thrilled to hear those words.

Thanks to
everyone that helped with our bike drive for Africa! The final tally is
in: 406 bikes, plus basic shop supplies, wheels, tires, and dozens and
dozens of racks and baskets that were removed from the bikes. The
pictures don't do justice to how tight these bikes are shoehorned in
there - every available air pocket is filled with something. Nothing
short of a smashing success so far!